Have you ever heard of a digital producer? No? No worries. Chances are most of you haven’t yet. But believe me when I say you actually want one.

In our last article, we examined the differences between business coaches, consultants, and mentors. We explored how each one can help grow your business. Not surprising, while each of these roles comes with its own specific skill set, there are places where they overlap or even take on larger, broader contexts.

Today, we’re going to look at how a digital producer can also take on the role of an online business mentor. No, I don’t mean someone handing out continuous bits of unsolicited advice (cue Mommy issues here). I know all too well the value of autonomy, and no one needs a blowhard standing over their shoulder with a bullhorn. But good mentorship is integral to growth, and mentors bring practical, experience-based advice based that helps you steer clear of frequent pitfalls.

When you’re up to your elbows in everything from generating leads to figuring out the best tech platforms to coordinating project teams to work together – you get a broad range of understanding. Why not pass it on?

What is a Digital Producer?

To refresh, a digital producer manages the production of digital media in all its forms. They act as project coordinators, supervisors, budgeters, strategists, content creators, and client liaisons. There are probably a few other hats in there I’ve forgotten to mention, but ultimately I am a deeply-organized busybody – haha. Sometimes I’m referred to as a multimedia producer, webmaster, and even an internet producer, but I prefer Digital Producer. It encompasses the other titles neatly and leaves room for the many other tasks I often take on.

We’ve all seen those amusement parks and circus performers who balance spinning plates on the ends of sticks, yes? We’ve watched as they move from plate to plate quickly and decisively, ensuring that no plate ever stops spinning and that every moving part is working together. Well that, my dears, is a good metaphor for what I do.

But what does that mean in terms of mentorship?

Digital Producer As Mentor

We know that successful mentorship requires experience. The wider the range of experience, the broader the knowledge base. There is no such thing as too much knowledge. There is, however, such a thing as not knowing how to properly disseminate knowledge. And this is exactly what Digital Producers offer. On paper, my job description seems a mile long, and with good reason. I’ve been the one spinning all those plates. Each of those spinning plates comes with hard-earned experience. But in order to keep those plates spinning, I have to understand what it is required. I have to recognize how my experience affects the tasks at hand.

For instance, is the project struggling with its organizational capabilities? Or, is there some lacking diplomacy between project teams or leads? Or, maybe clients are wanting better communication about where their work is at, and how it’s fitting their budget? Maybe there are technical issues with getting the message across multiple platforms? The combinations of variables are numerous, and I’ve seen most of them by now. Guiding someone through the more narrow corridors of digital media production is something I take great pride in.

Am I Hiring a Digital Producer or a Business Mentor?

Okay, let’s call a spade a spade. You are hiring a Digital Producer. That’s my job. I’m not a nanny. I won’t babysit or run to the store to grab eggs. But I will take your ideas and vision and produce them for the digital world to experience. The mentorship side is a byproduct. It happens naturally as I interact with the many team members working to bring a project to its completion. My goal is to recognize this part of our work for what it is, and use it to help your business evolve and grow as it needs to.

That’s my two bits on the topic, now how about you? Any business owners or Digital Producers out there? How do you define your work? Leave a comment to tell me more.

About the Author

Lysa is a digital producer who helps service-based entrepreneurs fulfill their business vision through creative ideation, technical solutions, and relationship marketing. With 19 years of diverse experience in broadcast and digital media, she provides a wide range of opportunities to work with a variety of clients and teams, both virtually and in-person.